Muchness of Childhood
by draculamomma
Summary: One boring humid day, Alice and the Mad Hatter go exploring. When they come across an abandoned castle, Alice runs into trouble as she is turned into a child. Can the Mad Hatter save her before she loses all memory of Underland? Review!
1. Introduction

Muchness of Childhood

An "Alice in Wonderland" 2010 story

By: Draculamomma

Introduction/Notes

Hello everyone reading this, I wanted to send a lot of thanks and gratitude to those who have wished me well and sent out kind words and luck for my exams. I got a lot of studying done today, which is great! Over 3 hours, not too shabby!

I recently came up with a new idea for a story, don't worry, I will finish "Slip, Slappity, Hop, the Rain Drops Plop" to the end. However, I got such an awesome new idea for another story, which I had to run off and do the first few chapters, which I am posting up right now.

That being said, I will say this. I have organized a clean schedule for now to fit in some free writing time as well as studying time for exams in order not to land in academic probation, however, in case I do, I will let everyone know in a short chapter/note like this, and I will also try to let you know when I might continue writing and whatnot. So for now, there are no fears, I am 70% sure I won't land in academic probation.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this new story, be sure to comment and review, be nice though, I am a little sensitive right now, as many of my fans can no doubt tell, so be nice. Else I won't be nice. Kindness is a two way street! Remember that.

Thanks a whole bunch dear fans, much love and gratitude to you all!

Best wishes,

Raven aka Draculamomma


	2. Lace and Boredom

Muchness of Childhood

An "Alice in Wonderland" 2010 story

By: Draculamomma

**Summary: **Alice is bored one day in Underland and decides to go exploring with the Mad Hatter and friends. When they come across a special type of cookies in an abandoned cookie castle, Alice finds herself in trouble as her body reverts back into childhood. Can the Mad Hatter save her before she loses all her memories of him and the Underland forever?

**Author's Note: **Hello dear fans and readers! I was actually planning on making a sequel to "Slip, Slappity, Hop, the Rain Drops Plop" however I decided to go for something different and more interesting! I thought to myself what would happen if the Mad Hatter got changed into his baby self, but I already had poor Alice trying to deal with a psychotic, murderous hatter in the last story. So this time, it's Alice's turn. She's going to drive him MAD! Haha, I hope everyone enjoys this new story! Review too. EVERYTIME YOU DON'T REVIEW A KITTEN DIES. DO YOU WANT ANYMORE KITTENS TO WIND UP DEAD? THEN REVIEW!

Chapter 1-Lace and Boredom

It was an exceptionally hot day down in the Underland. Alice fanned herself madly with a Chinese fan she had found lying on the table cloth at the Mad Hatter's tea party. Alice had decided to stay for good after learning her place was truly missed and needed in the Underland. Ever since she had come back a few months ago, she made herself right at home living with the Mad Hatter and often visiting the White Queen whenever she had free time. But sometimes she found no time at all to do so because the Mad Hatter never stopped chattering his head off.

She did enjoy his conversations, but sometimes she felt he didn't know when to stop. She didn't want to be rude, so she pretended to listen and would often nod her head or smile to show possible signs of interest. Luckily, on most days he wouldn't notice and would carry on unaffected.

It came to be one of those days, and Alice fought the temptation to roll her eyes and yawn loudly as she heard the Mad Hatter mutter on and on about different flavors of tea he had been concocting.

The sun was beating down harshly on Alice's pretty head. There was an absence of a single breeze about the humid air, and Alice felt her head swimming and getting dizzy to the point where she literally felt nauseous.

"_Please let his chattering stop!"_ She thought over and over in her head.

But the Mad Hatter seemed to show no signs of being affected by the heat. He waved his hands about and laughed excitedly more to himself than anyone else.

As Alice looked around, she could tell she wasn't the only one bothered by the crazy heat today. The March Hare had slunk across the table, with his face buried into a plate filled with water, snoozing away loudly. The Dormouse was also wheezing out hot air painfully, as she plopped into a teacup lazily.

"And so, if you always remember when the dragon snappers grow, you will learn that they're most friendly! Especially over here! They're very easy to tame, and they make lovely house pets and decorations!" the Mad Hatter muttered jovially, sipping some tea as he gazed over at Alice.

Alice nodded slowly, even moving her head proved to be a mistake. Her head was pounding and throbbing, she felt the top of her head on fire. She fanned herself quickly, sighing with happiness as a little bit of a breeze was created.

"Why so glum?" the Mad Hatter asked.

Alice glared at him. Why was he so dense sometimes? "Aren't you in the slightest bit uncomfortable?" she asked painfully.

He looked shocked. "No, why should I be?"

Alice rolled her eyes this time and groaned out, "Hatter the heat is absolutely dreadful today!"

He looked up at the sky and shrugged. "It's not bothering me, Alice."

She fanned herself more furiously. "Well it is bothering me!"

"Shall we go inside then?" he offered, standing up.

"It's even worse inside!" she shrieked.

He frowned slightly and sat back down, "Just a suggestion."

Alice glared. She had no idea what went on inside his head sometimes. Truth be told, she envied him right now, if he was being truthful by not being affected by the heat.

Alice lazily kicked off her short ankle boots, and tore off her leggings, sighing with happiness as she wiggled her toes underneath the shadows of the table. "That's better."

The Mad Hatter laughed and poured himself more tea. "See? All better now!"

Alice shook her head, "It's still awfully warm. What's going on today? I don't remember it ever being this warm!"

The Dormouse hissed as she stood up inside her teacup. "That's because it was never this hot, Missy!" With that said, she plopped back inside the cup.

The Mad Hatter nodded, smiling widely, "There you have it!"

Alice was about to scream with frustration, when a familiar set of grinning teeth appeared before her. "Hello Cheshire." She greeted miserably.

The Cheshire Cat also looked affected by the weather. His fur was matted and dripped with sweat. "Good afternoon, Alice."

"How do you deal with it?" She asked, meaning the heat.

The Cheshire Cat smiled, "I'm not. Even sitting high on a tree branch in the dark forest is doing me no good."

"How about some tea? Tea always helps!" The Mad Hatter offered.

The Cheshire Cat floated over to the other end of the table facing the Mad Hatter and sighed sadly, "No, I do not care for tea, Tarrant. For tea is awfully high in temperature, and it would defeat the purpose."

The Mad Hatter's eyes turned dark at once. He stood from his spot at the table and approached the Cheshire Cat menacingly, speaking in his infamous Scottish accent, "How dare you presume to know so much about everything, you great big, good for nothing-"

"HATTER!" Alice and the Dormouse yelled simultaneously.

"Sorry!" He squeaked in a high pitched voice, his eyes returning back to normal.

"I think the heat is getting to everybody!" Alice said, fanning herself rapidly.

The March Hare's ears perked up at this, and he lifted his head from his water filled plate. "The heat! The Heat! Such a mess! It's driving us all very mad! HAHA!" he giggled and threw a teacup into a tree trunk.

"And this dress is just absorbing it all in!" Alice carried on. She was wearing a white dress, filled with lace. The dress covered majority of Alice's shoulders, leaving a little view of her collar bone. The dress covered her back, and arms just up to the elbows, but it was still trapping in a lot of the heat. The dress had a few thick layers, but other than that it appeared to be a very comfortable dress.

"I'm so warm; I can literally feel beads of sweat clinging on to my body underneath the dress!" Alice cried, fanning herself once more before setting the fan down, clearly giving up.

"Lace makes waste!" the March Hare randomly yelled out, pulling at his soaking ears, and tying them in a knot above his head, resembling something of a small ball above his head.

Alice pushed her chair away from the table. The heat seemed to be enveloping her wherever she was, and sitting close to the table did her no good.

"Come on Tarrant, she's right, we cannot stay out here much longer." The Cheshire Cat purred.

The Mad Hatter took off his hat and fanned Alice. "It can't be that bad…"

"It is!" Alice shrieked.

"I take your word for it, Alice, but what can we do?" the Mad Hatter asked.

Alice bit her bottom lip, deep in thought. She hadn't been prepared for a question like that, but the Mad Hatter was right, they needed to come up with a solution to the heated problem lying in their hands.

She turned to the Cheshire Cat, who was lying on his back, tail swishing about madly. Alice had an idea, "Cheshire, you say you were just in the forest, yes?"

He grinned weakly at her, "Correct."

"Tell me, isn't there _just one_ cool area?"

The Cheshire Cat suddenly grinned deviously, "Now that you mention it, there is a pond down in the forest where most of the animals and beasts of the forest dwell, especially on days as hot and humid as this."

Alice sat up immediately, eyes shining happily, "What a splendid idea, Cheshire! A pond sounds perfect!"

The Dormouse crawled out of her teacup lazily, tail drooping, "I'll second that!" she wheezed out.

The March Hare giggled and held up his plate full of water above his head, laughing louder as the water in the plate dripped all over his face. "A marching to the pond we shall go!" he sang out as he shook his head about like a dog. "PLATE." He said randomly, looking up at his now empty plate.

The Mad Hatter leapt up on the seat of his chair, standing tall at attention while pointing toward the woods. "To the woods we march, seeking the solace of the cold pond!" he placed his hat upon his head, and jumped down bowing before Alice.

"Milady." He said, holding out his hand to her.

Alice giggled and placed her hand in his, allowing him to lead her toward the woods. The Dormouse hitched a ride on the Cheshire cat's back, while the March Hare remained behind, not moving from his seat.

"Aren't you coming then?" Alice called back to him.

The March Hare only laughed and threw his plate at them, which both Alice and the Mad Hatter ducked.

"Don't forget to come back in time for tea!" he laughed manically, rolling onto the grass.

"Onward then!" the Mad Hatter cried, hauling Alice into the woods with him.

End of Chapter 1 I hope you guys enjoy my new idea for another story; I am getting a bit bored of all the ones where Alice goes back to wonderland and falls in love with the Hatter. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to put anyone's story down in particular, but I like new things, and I never get tired of trying out new ideas. I am sure there are some wonderfully written stories about Alice going back, but I unfortunately can't make them all as interesting as those ones, so I tried something else! Review, or else I will shoot a kitten. (Just kidding, I'm a HUGE cat person!)


	3. By the Pond

Muchness of Childhood

An "Alice in Wonderland" 2010 story

By: Draculamomma

Author's Notes: This is really chapter 2! Pay the damn header no attention because I had posted an author's note before, so yeah. And review. Or else I will kidnap you and feed you to my fish.

Chapter 2-By the Pond

The friends didn't have to walk very far before they reached the pond. Alice tore away from the Mad Hatter, and landed in the cool grass right on the edge of the pond.

"This is so much better!" she cried, flipping her hair back and tying it into a tight bun.

"I like your hair that way, Alice." The Cheshire cat purred, pawing at her ball of hair.

The Mad Hatter chuckled. "I prefer it when it's down, it makes you look so…wild, and gorgeous."

Alice began blushing, but the moment was soon interrupted by the Dormouse, who landed in Alice's lap and began lapping at the water quickly, spraying water all over Alice's dress.

"Woah! That's cold!" she cried, nearly booting the Dormouse into the pond.

The Mad Hatter plopped down beside Alice, and dipped his fingers in the water. He ran his fingers on his face and sighed happily.

Alice breathed in the fresh air blowing around the pond. The Cheshire cat dipped a paw in the water, and cried out in shock when a gush of water flew into his face.

"Cheshire! What's going on?" Alice cried, sitting up at attention.

The Cheshire cat glared at the ripples in the surface of the water. "Vermin." He hissed.

The Mad Hatter laughed uncontrollably.

"Stop laughing!" the Cheshire cat turned on him.

The Mad Hatter stopped laughing and hung his head low.

Suddenly, a fish's head popped out from the water, and shot out a stream of water at the Cheshire cat once more, wetting his fur.

"Hey!" the Cheshire cat yelled, licking himself clean.

"That's for trying to eat my son!" the mother fish glared.

Alice sighed and cocked an eyebrow at the Cheshire cat, "Cheshire, did you try to eat her son?" she asked.

The Cheshire cat kept licking himself, oblivious to Alice's question.

"I'll take that as a 'yes' then." Alice sighed.

The mother fish turned and headed back down under the water, but she soon came back up and squirted more water at the Cheshire cat, who cleverly leapt out of the way.

"Missed me!" he laughed.

The fish soon squirted him again, this time hitting him square in the face.

"You're a horrid pig!" she cried.

"I'm not pig, madam. I'm a cat, a Cheshire cat." He purred, shaking his fur.

The fish simply huffed and swam away, muttering profane words as she disappeared beneath the watery depths.

Alice lay back in the cool grass, and giggled as she felt the cold rush into her back, causing her to curl her toes in delight.

The Mad Hatter was playing with the water, giggling to himself as he built a boat out of weeds and grass.

Alice looked up at the clouds and tried to picture animals and different shapes, when she saw a few dark clouds. But these clouds weren't rain clouds, oh no. They came with a weird burning chocolate smell.

Alice sat up and sniffed the air. When the wind blew in her direction, she could smell flour and dough.

"Got something on your mind Alice?" the Cheshire cat asked.

Alice nodded, "I smell something burning, but I also smell something quite delicious."

The Mad Hatter lifted an arm and sniffed his armpit. "It's not me!"

"No, it's coming from those clouds up there!" she pointed at the dark clouds.

They all looked back at the mysterious clouds, frowning as the clouds moved away from their field of vision, and hid behind a large bunch of thick trees as the wind carried them away.

The Cheshire cat laid his ears back and sniffed at the wind, "The clouds are from the East, but I dare say I haven't been that far in Underland before."

Alice cocked an eyebrow, "East? Well I want to what's East!"

The Mad Hatter nodded excitedly and stretched, "Sounds like an adventure to me!"

The Dormouse perked her ears up and leapt to her feet, "Blimey! I feel dandy for an adventure!"

The Cheshire cat was the only one who frowned at them all.

"What's wrong, fur ball?" the Dormouse asked playfully.

"You can go off if you like, I'm in a brighter mind to stay put right here." The Cheshire cat sneered.

Alice rolled her eyes and stood up, "Don't be so lazy, it's a beautiful day for a walk!"

"Precisely why I should stay here. If I come with you, I'll ruin everything." He argued again.

"Wuss." Alice hissed.

The Cheshire cat shook his head, "I feel nothing but danger from the East, but me my guest, Alice."

Alice sighed, "Fine then, we're leaving."

With that said, the Cheshire cat grinned widely, and disappeared, his voice echoing in the wind, "You'll wish you had listened to me."

Alice rolled her eyes once more, but she couldn't help but feel a little chill which left goose bumps all over her skin. She knew the Cheshire cat was very wise, but there were also times in the past where he'd tried to play pranks on her and scare her for the fun of it. She hoped this was one of those times.

Alice turned and helped the Mad Hatter up, "Now's not the time to stand around! We've got to follow the burning stench to wherever it came from!"

She walked forward in the direction she knew the smell came from, and the Mad Hatter held the Dormouse in the palm of his hand before following Alice with a mischievous grin painted all over his face.

"I just love adventures!" the Dormouse cried, dancing all over the Mad Hatter's palm.

"As do I!" he laughed along.

End of Chapter 2! Hope you enjoyed! Updates will be soon, right after I get done my Anthro exam, which is on the 21st! Wish me luck! Thanks!


	4. The Castle

Muchness of Childhood

An "Alice in Wonderland" 2010 story

By: Draculamomma

Author's Notes: Hello everyone! Yes, it's been a while since my last update, sorry! Please don't be upset, and don't think I am bailing out, because that's not true, I am not. I intend to finish both of these stories up until the end, and I am working at it at a very slow pace though.

Welcome to a brand new term! I am pleased to say I have made it through another semester at my university, a big shout out and thank you goes to all those who wished me luck, thanks so much guys. I don't know what I'd do without you!

So, onward with this story, and keep an eye out for another update on my other story as well. And please, remember to review, because if you don't, then how do I know as an author if I am pleasing my readers and keeping their interest? Please send feedback, no matter in what form it is! I want to hear your thoughts and opinions! So send them in after reading. Thanks a lot guys, have a great weekend.

Chapter 3-The Castle

Alice hummed a tune to herself to keep the jovial mood flowing as she skipped through the forest and past the trees and houses with her friends by her side, still feeling uncomfortably hot. As she ran, something of a small breeze was created which kept her satisfied for a few moments before she would stop and let her friends catch up, and then notice the heat rise in her cheeks, and the cold sweat running down her back.

She cringed and felt so uncomfortable. But she kept leading her small group, in hopes of finding some form of shelter from where the lovely smell of candy and baked goods came from.

"Do hurry up, Hatter!" she cried happily, gathering her skirts up in a bunch as she darted across a large puddle carefully.

"Coming, Alice! Wait for me!" the Mad Hatter called after her, and stepped on a small rock peeking up at the surface of the large puddle, but as soon as he had set foot on the rock, it moved, and caused him to slip and fall face first into the dirty puddle.

"Hatter! Are you alright?" Alice called to him, turning back and kneeling so she was face to face with him.

He sighed and began to stand, but a small turtle walked past him slowly, and frowned. "How'd you like it if I stepped on your back?" the turtle sneered.

"I didn't see you there, I'm sorry." The Mad Hatter tried to apologize, but the turtle merely sneered more, and continued to walk as he shouted angrily behind him.

"Didn't see me? Makes sense! Makes perfect sense! No one ever has time for smaller creatures here! Especially turtles! God forbid if someone paid attention to a turtle!"

Alice helped up the Mad Hatter while the Dormouse simply rolled over on her sides, laughing loudly like a maniac.

"Are you laughing at my pain?" the Mad Hatter growled at her as he shook himself off and tried to dry off.

"I'm s-sorry! Tarrant! I c-c-can't help it!" She wheezed between laughter after laughter.

His eyes grew dark, "She's laughing at me! Alice! She's laughing at the situation!"

Alice sighed and rolled her eyes, but did nothing else except help the Mad Hatter out of the puddle. "Come on, in this blazing heat, you should be dry in no time."

"It's not the heat that's bothering me, young Alice!" he cried angrily.

Alice shrugged but moved on, eager to find out where the smell was coming from exactly, and what it really was. They moved for a few more minutes, before Alice lost the smell.

"No! It's going! It's gone!" Alice pushed past her friends, long, beautiful sunshine blond hair flowing behind her. For a moment, the Mad Hatter closed his eyes and took in her lovely scent, trailing after her all the way to his nostrils. He stopped suddenly, when he felt as if he were being watched.

"You alright?" the Dormouse cocked an eyebrow and glared at him in confusion for a moment before he shook his head, and gathered her up in his palm and dashed after Alice as fast as he could, feeling much like a dog as he inhaled her scent.

"Alice! Wait for us!" the Mad Hatter yelled from the top of his lungs. He ran and ran and ran, and yet he didn't hear or see Alice anywhere.

Just when he'd thought he lost her, the Mad Hatter grinned widely as he saw a head of clean, shiny blond hair standing less than a few yards away from him. He waltzed over to her, panting slightly.

Alice paid no attention to the Mad Hatter behind her as she stood right in front of a tall gloomy looking castle. The castle had many bricks missing, and there were cracks in the dirty, grimy windows, and the sour smell was slowly wafting in the air towards their nostrils.

"So this is where the smell came from!" the Dormouse hissed, covering her nose with her paws.

Alice nodded and waved a hand in her face to fan the air away, "I don't understand, it was so sweet before…"

The Mad Hatter frowned. He backed away from the castle, gripping a strong hand on Alice's shoulders. "Come Alice, I don't like this place."

Alice shrugged her shoulders out of the Mad Hatter's grasp, and boldly walked forward to the doors of the castle.

"Alice! No wait!" The Mad Hatter tore after her, and caught her hand in his own as she raised her hands to knock in the thick, dirty castle doors.

"What is it Hatter?" she hissed in annoyance.

"I think we should go back, Alice."

She smiled sweetly, "Where's your sense of adventure, Hatter?"

"Back at the tea party."

Alice sighed and knocked loudly on the door.

The Mad Hatter cringed in fear, but after moments of pure silence, nothing happened. Alice knocked again, and when she got no answer, she pushed on the thick handles of the castle doors, and eventually pushed them open with her determination.

The castle seemed to cry out in pain as Alice opened the heavy doors. The Mad Hatter peered up at the dirty windows of the castle, and thought he could see faces looking back down at him. He shook his head and walked after Alice.

Alice was already walking into the courtyard of the castle, smiling as she saw hedges cut and shaped like little animals and balloons.

She peered back over her shoulder at the Mad Hatter and the Dormouse and laughed, "Dangerous, huh?"

"Still, be careful!" The Mad Hatter called back at her.

Alice shook her head and skipped playfully down the bricked grounds of the courtyard, bowing and dancing around the hedge of a tall king. She plucked a flower off the ground and sniffed it happily.

"Can we leave, now?" the Dormouse asked shyly.

Alice noticed her tone of voice and sighed, "If you are s unsure, then why did you ever come anyway?"

The Dormouse glared at her, but kept silent.

Alice sighed again in frustration, "I wanted to go exploring! And you cannot stop me from exploring!"

"Yes, that would oh so defeat your lovely purpose, wouldn't it?" the Dormouse suddenly spat.

The Mad Hatter covered her mouth quickly, and grinned at Alice, shifting his eyes back and forth in fear.

"What was that?" Alice asked, hands on her hips.

"Nothing!" the Mad Hatter sang out, fighting to keep his hand against the Dormouse's mouth, and she tried to squirm and bite him.

Alice glared at them, but turned back and began searching for the doors of the castle. She searched around the large, thick walls of the castle, admiring the bundles of thick, heavy vines that were twisted in odd positions everywhere around the castle.

She walked further past a small birdbath which was filled with murky dirty water, with vines growing all around it, and soon noticed an area right to her left. It was a dark corner of the castle, and Alice noticed not as many vines were covering that area of the castle.

She ventured forward slowly, afraid of the dark, and partly wondering if anything was going to jump out at her and scare her half to death. But she still made it to the dark corner, and noticed it was just a thicker and darker color of the same vines.

She wanted to cry in sadness, expecting something hidden, but she found nothing. It really was an old abandoned castle, and nothing more. She turned and was about to tell her friends she was ready to leave, when just out of the corner of her eyes, she saw a golden light gleaming.

Alice paused, and slowly turned back to the vines. She walked toward them, when an arm outstretched.

"Alice? What is it?" the Mad Hatter called from behind her.

Alice was miles away and she didn't answer the Mad Hatter as she finally reached the golden gleam. Alice felt a thick bump against her legs, and looked down to see a vine covered step. She ascended the steps, one at a time very slowly, until she reached what appeared to be a small porch.

Alice turned back to the light. She saw it was directly under a specifically thick vine. She pried at the vine, but it didn't move. She dug her fingernails into it, wishing she had brought a knife, but it was no use, the vine was covering something which Alice was desperately interested in.

She turned back and found the Mad Hatter nose to nose with her. She shrieked and shook her head, "I can't get this vine out of my way!"

"Then let's go!" the Dormouse interrupted.

Alice ignored her. "Hatter, can you help me?"

The Mad Hatter kept his crazy eyes lowered, but heard the beautiful plea in her voice, and forced himself to look up. She smiled sweetly at him, oh so innocently.

"Please?" How could he resist that?

"You need to tickle the vine, Alice."

"Tickle?"

"Tickle it."

Alice cocked an eyebrow. "Hatter, this isn't a game."

He nodded, "I know, I was being serious, Alice. These vines are too strict, they need some laughter, what do you say?" With that, he raised his fingers and tickled the vines as hard as he could.

Suddenly, bursts of laughter flew in all directions and they were so loud that Alice actually covered her ears for a moment before reaching forward and tickling the vines with the Mad Hatter.

The vines shook and tried to twist away, but they soon grew weak, and one by one began peeling away from the door, and out of the way. As Alice tickled on, she saw a round object. It appeared to be a doorknob!

Alice tickled the last of the vines, and breathed a sigh of relief. The door wasn't locked. The door was actually open ajar. Alice reached for the knob, but the Mad Hatter clamped an arm down on her hand fast.

"No." He whispered.

Alice rolled her eyes, "It's ok Hatter."

The Mad Hatter nodded slowly, and let go of her hand, walking close behind her as Alice pushed the door open, and walked into the quiet, dark castle.

The Dormouse followed behind, her trail dragging on the ground, "I don't feel right about this."

"Tell me about it." The Mad Hatter whispered back before the door slammed shut behind them.

End of Chapter! Review! Hope it was good, if it wasn't, blame the sickness, as I am writing while still ill! So be nice! Else I will send my cat Foz after you!


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